Gareth Southgate takes leap of faith with England boys’ brigade | Stuart James

Manager sends out message young players should follow Jadon Sancho and move abroad to kickstart international careers

It seemed fitting in many ways that on the day when Gareth Southgate signed a contract to extend his tenure through to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the England manager named a squad who also provided a glimpse into the future. There were first call-ups for Mason Mount and James Maddison but it was the name of Jadon Sancho, and in particular the Borussia Dortmund forward’s date of birth, that jumped out of the sheets of paper handed out at St George’s Park on Thursday.

Aged 18, Sancho is the first player to be born this millennium to be called up by England, which says much for his precocious talent but is also a sign of the direction Southgate is taking the national team. Only one of the 25 players named for the Nations League games against Croatia and Spain was born in the 1980s – Southampton’s Alex McCarthy – while the inclusion of Sancho and Mount alongside Trent Alexander‑Arnold means there are three teenagers in the squad.

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